Do We Know What We See?

A new paper uses a classic experiment to sow doubt as to whether we are aware of everything in our vision

By

Alison Gopnik

Updated July 31, 2014 11:35 a.m. ET

In a shifty world, surely the one thing we can rely on is the evidence of our own eyes. I may doubt everything else, but I have no doubts about what I see right now. Even if I'm stuck in The Matrix, even if the things I see aren't real—I still know that I see them.

Or do I?

A new paper in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences by the New York University philosopher Ned Block demonstrates just how hard it is to tell if we...